Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New $6.98 Million Investment in CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 98,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,983,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in CocaCola by 7.2% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 12,376,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $875,602,000 after purchasing an additional 833,900 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of CocaCola by 1.4% in the second quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 22,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,567,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the 2nd quarter valued at $7,605,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in shares of CocaCola by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,596,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,987,000 after acquiring an additional 11,581 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential PLC increased its holdings in CocaCola by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 77,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,496,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at CocaCola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.17, for a total value of $2,250,751.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,894,396.10. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 13,548 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.93, for a total value of $947,411.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,638,109.25. This trade represents a 26.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 225,252 shares of company stock worth $15,953,007. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

CocaCola Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $72.96 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $68.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.49. The company has a market cap of $313.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.00. CocaCola Company has a one year low of $60.62 and a one year high of $74.38.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $11.40 billion for the quarter. CocaCola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 27.34%. Analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. CocaCola’s payout ratio is currently 67.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of CocaCola from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price target on CocaCola from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on CocaCola from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.43.

About CocaCola

The Coca-Cola Company, a beverage company, manufactures, markets, and sells various nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company provides sparkling soft drinks, sparkling flavors; water, sports, coffee, and tea; juice, value-added dairy, and plant-based beverages; and other beverages. It also offers beverage concentrates and syrups, as well as fountain syrups to fountain retailers, such as restaurants and convenience stores.